Cause and Effect World

Cheating, corruption, consequences

Many people are saying that the students in Hanover, New Hampshire who broke into their high school to steal math exams as part of a wider pattern of cheating throughout the school need to be punished harshly, or we’ve taught them that they can get out of anything. 

I have to say - certainly the punishment must be memorable.  However, I also think that teenagers must have the option of ‘working their way out of’ this circumstance so their lives aren’t entirely wrecked.

So, how about this - since they are known cheaters, how can we be sure that anything they’ve done in school is legitimate?  I say, make them retake all the classes they’ve taken so far in high school.  This will achieve a multitude of objectives:

• they will have to prove that they haven’t cheated on other tests (all tests will be monitored, papers will be verified as written by them);
• the time that it will take to repeat high school will help them focus on what was wrong about what they did;
• they will still be able to apply to college and continue with their careers;
• delaying their graduation from high school will prevent them from continuing to college with their peers, which will be perceived as a significant price.

Compare this with the World Bank’s emphasis on fighting corruption in client countries (read: poor countries that need the Bank’s financial assistance.)  From the World Bank’s website: 

“…The experience of the first decade of transition brought about a greater awareness that improved governance and reduced corruption are essential to reach the long-term objectives of poverty alleviation and sustainable growth.”

In other words, the reason our society works as well as it does is because, for the most part, we can trust each other.  Where people do not believe in the system, it breaks and everything is at risk.

The foundation of our system is trust.  Somehow these kids haven’t learned this.  They did not get it from their parents or their community.   If we are to survive as a country, this has to be the highest priority.  If it’s good enough for the World Bank, it’s good enough for Hanover, New Hampshire.